I support HB1438. Law enforcement officers in Virginia are not trained in civil immigration enforcement. And that is all law enforcement, from state troopers to local police and sheriffs to park rangers and game wardens. Asking them to enforce and help with civil immigration enforcement is dangerous because they don’t have the training or time to learn another set of civil codes. And it takes away from them serving their communities. My taxes pay for Virginia law enforcement to enforce Virginia laws. They serve and protect my community. Please vote yes on this bill. It won’t interfere with federal immigration authorities serving judicial warrants as local law enforcement already respect and follow judicial warrants. It will keep our officers serving us.

I write in support of House Bills 1260, 1265, 1438, 1440, 1441, 1442, and 1482. In combination, these bills form a framework to protect civil liberties, reinforce the integrity of public institutions, and clearly define the appropriate scope of law enforcement authority in Virginia. These bills ensure that schools, courthouses, polling places, and other civic spaces remain accessible and safe; that individuals can participate in education, the justice system, and elections without fear or intimidation; and that enforcement actions are transparent, accountable, and grounded in judicial authorization. Collectively, they strengthen public trust by drawing clear boundaries between state and federal roles, prioritizing due process, and strengthening public safety by upholding constitutional rights.

I oppose these bills as it is the job of law enforcement to uphold the laws of the United States and to protect and serve the citizens of Virginia. Citizens is a key word that is misinterpreted in these bills.

Oppose Why are you creating dangerous situations in Virginia’s communities and cities? It is disgraceful that the leftists care more about getting criminals and illegal criminals on their side rather than protecting law abiding citizens in Virginia. This is a shameful way to get votes ! Where were you when former President Obama deported masses of illegal immigrates? Silent and did not care. What a double standard on the left every time. Please stop causing trouble and harm to our lives.

I write to express my emphatic support for HB1438, relating to agencies of the Commonwealth; law-enforcement agencies; employees and officers; agreements with federal authority for immigration enforcement; prohibitions and limitations. Federal cooperation agreements, or 287(g) agreements, create a de facto national police force by allowing Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to deputize state law enforcement agencies to conduct immigration enforcement. Under this program, numerous state and local law enforcement agencies have received federal funding to conduct street-level immigration enforcement, execute ICE warrants, and question detainees about immigration status - all actions which would otherwise be legally impermissible. 287(g) agreements unconscionably limit constitutional police powers reserved to the states by extending federal authority to influence and control state law enforcement. This trend is particularly troubling in Virginia, where not only local law enforcement agencies but the state Department of Wildlife Resources (DWR) have acquiesced to conducting federal immigration enforcement. DWR officers have broad authority to stop, question, and detain people on public lands and waterways. In fact, DWR's largest expense by far is in law enforcement, towards which the Department spent 25.1 million dollars in 2025 alone. Deputizing conservation officers to conduct immigration actions departs from DWR's mission to "Conserve, Connect, and Protect" the Commonwealth's wildlife and natural resources. Instead, funds restricted to use for conservation programs and responsibilities are being diverted to pay conservation officers to enforce federal immigration priorities which often entail human rights abuses against local communities. By allowing 287(g) agreements in Virginia, the Commonwealth is reducing its police power and specifically limiting habitat protection, poaching prevention, and ecosystem stewardship by DWR in favor of priorities unrelated to wildlife. This means DWR has fewer resources to implement science-informed wildlife governance and protect the public trust in healthy ecosystems and robust wildlife populations. This is only one example of the many ways in which 287(g) agreements blur the boundaries between state and federal power, diffuse governmental accountability, and erode community trust. For this and many other reasons, I oppose 287(g) agreements in Virginia and strongly support HB1438 in prohibiting these agreements and safeguarding Commonwealth police powers and conservation governance.

I am writing in support of Virginia HB1438 (sponsor: Guzman, title: Agencies of the Commonwealth; law-enforcement agencies; employees and officers; agreements with federal authority for immigration enforcement; prohibitions and limitations.). As a wildlife scientist who has spent her career researching, educating, and recreating on public lands in Virginia, I was appalled to read the MEMORANDUM OF AGREEMENT (MOA) 287(g) Task Force Model signed by the director of Virginia's Department of Wildlife Resources, which diverts the Commonwealth's already limited public resources and enlists DWR employees into functioning as immigration officers, under authorization of Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Department of Homeland Security. The officers empowered under 287(g) agreements are not immigration experts; and they embolden DHS & ICE's campaign of terror against immigrants and citizens alike. Diverting resources from conservation, science, and facilities maintenance to support ICE and DHS actions will harm our natural resources and the people who use them. I oppose this MOA for empowering the ever-expanding reach of federal agents to surveil the public, to use public funds without regard to democratic input, to employ racial profiling tactics to harass and detain the public, and to neglect the core mission and function of the Department of Wildlife Resources to "[manage] inland fisheries, wildlife, and recreational boating for Virginia... and inspir[e] people to value the outdoors and their role in nature." For this reason, I support Virginia HB1438, which would invalidate and prohibit such MOAs in the Commonwealth.